The French were unstoppable going forward and went over six times during their 46-19 win over Scotland in Paris through Imanol Harinordoquy, Yannick Jauzion, David Marty, Cedric Heymans, Olivier Milloud and Elvis Vermeulen.

It meant they finished the tournament having won four of their five matches, last weekend's 26-18 defeat to England at Twickenham the only blot on their copybook.

"We wanted to win, and that's what we did," said Maso.

"It's a great day for French rugby. We said the match against England should be a source of learning.

"It's not easy to win the tournament. But we have won three of the last four, and that makes us a world-class team.

"Champions are champions in a moral snese. They hold themselves in dignity.

"We weathered a storm in England, but this team has gone on to hold their own."

Maso believes winning another title will boost the team heading into the World Cup later this year, which is being held on French soil.

By September, we will be ready to do our best," he added. "The World Cup will be extraordinary. We are going to be tough to beat."

Head coach Bernard Laporte, who was taking charge of his last RBS 6 Nations game at the helm of Les Bleus, had nothing but praise for his team's achievements.

He said: "I am stunned, even dazzled by the way the team played and managed to hold themselves together, especially at the end.

"It is a culmination of a whole week of hard, hard work. I commend the mindset of our players.

"It was one of our best matches for a long time, although there is no such thing as a perfect match.

"We started to gain positive momentum, and the attitude of the players made the difference.

"The crowd were great as well. The public are ready for the World Cup - they were on the same wavelength as the players."

Raphael Ibanez, who has captained France throughout the Six Nations in the absence of injured Fabien Pelous, admitted Ireland's massive win in Italy before France's game had given his side some thinking to do.

"We were mindful of their result," said the Wasps hooker. "We knew what we had to do. But it was not a conventional match format."